One of the purposes of the Quadricentennial Conference is to encourage the participation several special categories of scholars including (1) those who have researched Harriot topics for many years; (2) those undertaking new research on Harriot topics; and (3) those working on making use of Harriot sources to look at larger fields of knowledge. Conference organizers are thus particularly interested in identifying and making contact with individuals in these groups who can be identified during the conference planning process. These include—

Past presenters at Thomas Harriot Seminars, University of Durham

Previous lecturers at Oriel College Thomas Harriot Lectures

Authors of works on Thomas Harriot and his community of friends

Researchers on the Roanoke settlements in America

Researchers on native Americans in the period of the Roanoke colonies and Jamestown settlements

Researchers on the historic botany, fauna, and geology of coastal Carolina

Historians of science and technology in fields explored by Harriot

Maritime historians working on evolution of the art of navigation and other nautical topics in the 16th and 17th century

Military historians of the engineering of defenses and cannon fire trajectories

Researchers on the history of astronomy and origins of telescope as an observational tool

Early history of mapping and map-making in the 16th and 17th centuries

Historians on the early exploration of North America

Collectors of artifacts, art, and other historical materials relating to sixteenth century early settlements in the coastal Carolina region

Linguistic specialists on native and European languages from the period

Conference organizers are eager to learn of scholars and researchers working on these and other topics and invite email, phone, and other written inquiries and suggestions.